


Stubborn Love

by maydaysmusings, Robin Lee (maydaysmusings)



Category: ATEEZ (Band), GOT7, MOBB (Band), NCT (Band), VAV (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-03
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-10-06 12:08:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20506772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maydaysmusings/pseuds/maydaysmusings, https://archiveofourown.org/users/maydaysmusings/pseuds/Robin%20Lee
Summary: What if fate was predetermined? Would you want to know yours? Would help others if you could see theirs?For Jackson Wang, those choices were made for him.





	1. 'Cuz I'm The King Of Wishful Thinking (Prologue)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a red string of fate, but it's not all it's cracked up to be.

According to ancient Chinese legend, the gods tied a red string around the ankles-or pinkies, if you believe the Japanese-of two people destined to find one another. The string would help always find each other, no matter what, as was according to plan. Two people who stay connected…

Soulmates.

All determined by a little red string? Sounds fake, I know. But as I pick up my book from the girl working the counter in our university library, I see her string isn’t very long. I turn slightly to see a boy with his head hung over a book. With a quick smile I turn back to the girl, “Do you enjoy parties?”

She looks up, a bit surprised by the question, but smiles anyway, “I don’t mind them. Why?”

“Well,” I grab a pen and two sticky notes, quickly scribbling the details down on both, but sticking one to my palm that she wouldn’t see. I hand her the other one, “There’s one tonight. You should come. Get out of the library for a minute.”

She rolls her eyes and smiles, “Have a good day.”

I nod and walk a path towards the guy’s desk and slap the note on the side as I pass by. Hopefully he reads it. Technically, it’s not interfering, because it’s on their own free will.

Free will. Funny concept.

I look at my own pinky-oh, yeah, the Japanese were right-and see my own string, severed, hanging off. Even if I willed it to connect, it wouldn’t. Free will, my ass. That’s for hopers and wishful thinkers, not realists like me.

Especially when I’m the only one who can see that everyone’s strings are connected but mine.


	2. How Am I Gonna Be An Optimist About This?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Loneliness can strike even the happiest, friendliest people.

See, the whole thing with the red string is that there’s only one and it’s a nice, soft red, through and through, stretching and retracting between a pair. And then there’s mine. A red one, severed part way through with a green frayed tip. I haven’t figured out what it means yet, but I’m sure I will one day.

I see two girls kind of off to the side, looking at each other and smiling shyly but neither saying anything, red string laying between them. Deciding to help, I jog over, “Incoming! Sorry!” And dart passed them, around the corner, so I can peek back. One of them is clutching the other that she moved out of the way and the way they’re looking into each other’s eyes tells me I’ve made a successful attempt to help.

Smiling, I head down the stairs and into the school’s cafeteria, looking at all the strings, layers of them, overlapping one another. Friends, family, lovers, all connected to each other, some unknowing of each other’s presence, others already having found each other. I step through the space, distracted by the mess of strings that I bump shoulders with someone, turning to look at them and apologize, glancing at their pinky and their face, everything slowing down. He was stunning, more stunning than anyone else I’d ever met or had even seen in magazines or on television. Pouty lips, full cheeks, bright eyes, floppy pink hair and a strong jaw. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m a ladies man all the way, but the way he was glaring at me would send tingles down anyone’s spine. I let my eyes travel back to his pinky and my heart stopped while my stomach turned round and round. It was severed just like mine was. He had already left the cafeteria by the time I got my feet to move and run after him, but he was gone.

“Damn…”

Shaking my head, I go back in and grab my lunch, dropping napkins and such between people who needed to get a clue, so they would interact. I pay for my lunch and smile at the elderly woman’s ring, string still perfectly preserved and hanging, no doubt connected to her partner, judging by her happy eyes and laugh lines. I look at her name tag, “You have a nice day, Mary,” and head out as she tells me to do the same, going to find somewhere to sit and watch the world pass by.

I manage to sit next to a group of people debating string theory and I wanna listen in, but it makes my head hurt so I focus on my own strings. Happy couples pass by, some of them connected, some of them not, but I hope they’ll figure it out soon.

I’ve met people who haven’t figured it out and are not married to their soulmate and it makes me sad, but there’s not much that I can do. See, if I tell someone, the string will be severed…or so I’ve read…I’ve never tried because I’ve been too afraid, too. I don’t really know what would happen, because I’m sure no one told me who my soulmate was when I was a kid, but my string is severed, so who really knows.

I finish my lunch and pull out my phone to text the president of my frat, ‘Hey, uh, do you mind if-‘ Then my phone rings and his face pops up, so I situate and answer the video chat. “Doyoung, hey…I was just texting you…”

“I know. I saw you typing. What is it?”

“I was gonna throw a party tonight, if that’s okay.”

“Jackson, you’re in the middle of senior year. Are you serious? Shouldn’t you be focusing?”

“It’s a small party! It’s been a month since the last!”

“Alright, fine,” he sighs and pinches his nose, “Are you in the commons?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Make sure you get to class later.”

“I promise.”

He nods and hangs up without a goodbye, which is expected, but still mean nonetheless. I chuckle and pocket my phone, looking around at the mess of red strings, my mind wandering off to the man I saw earlier who looked quite upset that I had bumped him, even by accident. I had never met another person with a severed string and had missed my chance. Groaning, I get up and start to head to class, one of my elective courses to fill up space in my schedule, music appreciation or something like that? It goes by slowly and I’m so ready to get out there, that I’m really not paying attention when I walk out to see a pink head of hair bob past.

I don’t think it’s him at first, but then he raises a hand to run it through his hair and I see the frayed string drag over the pink and start jogging after him. He’s walking fast and the hallway is pretty crowded, so I can’t get to him quite fast enough, then as I’m rounding the corner, I get a chest full of girl and nearly take her out.

“Oh! Sorry!” I see him disappear and then look down, “You alright?”

“Yeah, uh, sorry,” she nods and rubs her head, backing up to grab her book that fell.

I bend to try and help, but she shoos me. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, just tired,” she laughs a little.

“…I’m Jackson,” I smile and hold out my hand.

“Seren,” she eyes me and shakes it.

I smile softly at the long red string hanging off her finger, which then drapes over my wrist. For a moment, it makes me feel like a part of it. The soulmate thing. I pull back, “Hey, you like parties?”

“Uh…they’re okay?”

“Here, let me see your notes in your phone?” She hesitantly hands it over and I walk over to a bench in the hall that’s not in everyone’s way and types in the info for her, “Here you go,” I hand it back. “Come if you wanna. No occasion, just fun.”

“Thanks…” She blinks, “I gotta go…”

“Oh, of course! See you around!” I smile and sit on the bench, chewing my lip nervously. That man and I would cross paths again, but I couldn’t stop thinking about when and how. I was curious about him. Could he see the strings? Did he know? Is that why he walked so fast around me? Did he even really notice me like I noticed him?

I let my head fall back and rest against the wall, letting out a puff of air and looking at the strings, watching one lift up and up and two boys walk towards each other, then fall as they go directly passed without so much as a glance.

One day, I think.

Well, at least for them.

I pick at the string on my finger, playing with it absently, probably looking like I just liked touching my pinky, but in reality, it helped me remember that I had some semblance of a string.

It was comforting, sort of. Helped me keep faith. I was here to help others find their soulmates, so if that meant I didn’t have one, it was okay.

I just have to stay happy for those I help.

But now that I’ve seen that man…

I feel lonelier than ever.


End file.
